Felt hardening machine



Jam 31, E950 A. J. EVERS FELT HARDENING MACHINE R O T N E V m ATTO R N EY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 6, 1946 Jan. 31, 1950 A. J. EVERS FELT HARDENING MACHINE Filed Nov. 6, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 5

INVENTOR ARTHUR J. EVERS BY &- 9

ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 31, 1950 UNITED STATES'PATENT OFFICE FELT HARDENING MACHINE I Arthur J. Evers, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application November 6, 1946, Serial No. 708,142

Claims. (01. 28--14) This invention relates to a felt hardening machine particularly adapted for the hardening of curved felt bodies such as those employed in the fabrication of hats.

The hardening of felt bodies such as hat bodies in felt hat manufacture is accomplished by pressing the felt between formers or felt hardening members in the presence of steam, the formers being preferably oscillated one relatively to the other in order to intensify and speed up the hardening effect.

A felt hardening machine in which the felt hardeningmembers have felt engaging surfaces of a granular abrasive material is shown and claimed in my co-pending application Serial No. 555,376 of September 22, 1944, now Patent Number 2,442,590. It is there disclosed that if the felt engaging surfaces be formed of a granular abrasive product made for example of particles of silicon carbide such as Carborundum or of aluminum oxide such as Aloxite, or of emery or the like, bonded together into a hard stone-like but finely porous structure such that steam may be passed therethrough during the felt hardening operation, that the hardening produced is a very marked improvement over that obtainable by the felt hardening machines of the prior art. A harder felt is produced in a shorter time, greater shrinkage is obtained and the felt is more uniformly hard. The granular abrasive felt hardening member or members is steam-pervious and moisture-absorbent. The abrasive felt hardening member may be abrasive stones or naturally occurring stones such for example as sand stone or pumice, which have the preferred finely porous, moisture-absorbent granular structure.

Although felt hat bodies have curved body shapes in their final form, they have usually been hardened in fiat form, a flattened hat body being pressed and rubbed between flat formers or hardening members. In order to prevent the amalgamation of the two sides of the hat body, which sides are necessarily pressed together between the formers, a loose inner lining of woven cotton cloth must be employed. If the flat hardening of these hat bodies were to be carried out in a single step, unhardened creases would be formed along the sides thereof. To obviate this, it has in the past been necessary after hardening has proceeded to a certain point for the operator to stop the hardening machine, remove the hat body, rotate it to expose the unhardened part and reflatten it for further hardening. This operation must be performed several times during the hardening of each hat body. If through neglect or misjudgment th operator permits a given hardening action to proceed too lon creases will be formed which render the hat body defective. Moreover, this treatment produces only side hardening of the hat body, since the hat tip, which in its final form is ordinarily substantially spherically curved, does not receive the requisite degree of hardness, and a separate tip hardening step has to be carried out.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a machine employing the abrasive hardening principles disclosed in my said patent, Number 2,442,590, for hardening curved felt bodies while they are supported in their final curved shape, thus making for a finer and more homogeneous product. By hardening the bodies in their final curved shape, the problems incident to fiat hardening operations are entirely solved. As will be seen, even if a given side hardening operation is permitted to continue beyond the time necessary for proper hardening, no creases will be formed. Thus, even if through neglect or inattention or lack of skill, the operator of the machine should unduly delay changing the area of the hat body upon which side hardening takes place, the hat body will not thereby be ruined.

It is a corollary object of the present invention to provide in sucha machine an improved tip hardening mechanism, that mechanism embodying all of the advantages hereinbefore specified with respect to the side hardening mechanism.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing objects and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, the present invention relates to the felt hardening machine for treating curved felt bodies as defined in the appended claims and as described in this specification, taken together with the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of the apparatus of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an end view thereof taken from the right-hand side of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the side hardening mechanism taken along the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the tip hardening mechanism taken along the line 44 of Fig.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the central support of Fig. 1 with an unhardened felt body in hardening position thereon.

Referring now more in detail to the drawings and describing first the side hardening mechanism of the machine of my present invention, that mechanism comprises a pair of opposed hardening members A and B having opposed felt engaging surfaces C and D respectively, the surface C being curved to conform to at least a portion of the outside of the curved felt body 2 and the surface D being curved to conform to at least a portion of the inside thereof. At least one, and preferably both, of these felt engaging surfaces is formed of a granular abrasive material of the type above described, namely an artificial or natural abrasive stone, which is moistureabsorbent and steam-pervious. This material may, for example, be ordinary artificial abrasive stone, made of particles of silicon carbide such as Carborundum, or of aluminum oxide such as Aloxite, or of emery or the like bonded together into a hard, stone-like but finely porous structure by a ceramic binder. Such artificial abrasive stone is produced by numerous abrasive manufacturers in a substantially standard range of porosities and, in a range of medium to high porosity, constitutes a preferred material for purposes of the invention. Such stone of medium to high porosity is moisture-absorbent and freely porous to steam under the moderate pressure, slightly above atmospheric, which it is desirable to use in the hardening operation. Naturally occurring stones may also be employed, for example sandstone or pumice which have the preferred finely porous, moisture-absorbent granular structure. Another suitable type of material is produced by sintering metal granules or grits under controlled conditions to produce an incomplete fusion which binds the grits together into a hard, granular structure. A suitable material of this latter type which is finely porous, moisture-absorbent and steam-pervious is produced commercially by the Morraine Products Company of Dayton, Ohio, under the trade designation Porex. Another suitable type of material is unglazed finely porous pottery or earthenware that is moisture-absorbent and may be made in many variations of clays or binders.

Means generally designated E is provided for passing steam through the felt engaging surface C or D into the felt body 2 which is adapted to be engaged between said surfaces. A means, generally designated F, is employed for imparting relative oscillation between the members A and B while the felt body 2 is engaged between them in curved shape, this oscillation, preferably in conjunction with the passage of steam from the means E through the felt engaging surface C or D into the felt body 2, serving to harden the latter. In order to permit a felt body to be placed in hardening position on the apparatus and to be removed therefrom after hardening, a means G is provided for moving one of the members A or B toward and away from a position in which the felt body is engaged between the members.

The tip hardening mechanism of the present invention comprises a tip hardening member A having a felt engaging surface C which is curved to conform to the outside of the tip of the felt body, that tip generally having a substantially spherically curved shape. The tip hardening member A is mounted in a support H which has a guideway J which is also curved to conform to the shape of the tip. A means F is provided for oscillating the tip hardening member A, the member being constrained to move within the guideway J, thereby causing hardening of the tip of the felt body while that body in internally supported in its natural shape. A means G is provided for moving the member A toward and away from the position in which the felt body 2 is engaged between its felt engaging surface C and the felt engaging surface D of the hardening member B. The felt engaging surface C is preferably formed of the same type of material as the felt engaging surface C of the side hardening member A. The means E for passing steam through at least one of those surfaces into the felt body engaged between the hardener members is also employed in the tip hardening operation.

It will be appreciated that the means E may be so constructed that steam may be passed through either the hardening member B in accordance with the illustration or through the hardening members A and A, or through both E and A and A. In other words, steam may be applied either to the inside or to the outside of the hat body or to both of those surfaces as conditions warrant.

In the apparatus as here disclosed, side hardening and tip hardening cannot take place simultaneously since the hardening members A and A would interfere with one another were they both moved to felt engaging position simultaneously. This is apparent from Fig. 1. Consequently, the preferred procedure is to first side harden the felt body while the tip hardening member A is moved to the broken line position of Fig. 1 and then to tip harden the felt body while the side hardening member A is moved to its broken line position of Fig. 1. However, this sequence could be reversed if desired.

The apparatus consists of a bed or framework 4 upon which is placed a supporting bracket or stool 6 which supports plate 8 so as to be rotatable on hub l0 about hollow shaft l2. To the plate 8 is secured, as by bolts l4, a hollow cone 16 the exterior shape of which corresponds to the interior of the felt hat body. This cone is preferably formed of one of the abrasive moistureabsorbent and steam-pervious materials previously mentioned and its outer surface, over which the felt body 2 is placed (see Fig. 6), constitutes the felt engaging surface D. The cone itself constitutes the hardening member B, this member performing the additional function of interiorly supporting the felt body 2 in its desired final curved shape. The center of the base of the cone I6 is apertured as at I8, and through that aperture projects pipe 20 which also extends through the hollow portion 22 of the shaft l2. The lower end 24 of the shaft 20 projects below the shaft l2 and leads to a suitable source of steam, preferably steam under slight pressure above atmospheric. The upper end of the tube 20 is open so that steam may fill the hollow interior of the cone [6 and pass through the cone and through the felt engaging surface D thereof into the felt body 2 while it is being hardened.

It will be noted that as the plate 3 is rotated, the cone l6 and the felt body 2 placed thereon will also rotate.

Appropriately positioned on one side of the cone [6 is a bracket 26 which has pivoted thereto about shaft 28 an arm 30 which terminates in the hardening member support 32. T this support pieces 34 and 35 are attached, as by screws 31, so as to form a straight channel or guideway 38. Ears 40 of the metal plate 42, to which the segmental side hardening member A is attached by bolts 43, ride within the guideway 38, the hardening member A thus being free to move longitudinally with respect to its support 32.

The hardening member A is preferably formed of one of the materials above described and has a felt engaging surface C which is curved to conform at least in part to a portion of the curvature of the outside of the felt body. In the case of the machine for hardening hat bodies here described, the felt engaging surface C is concavely curved and the felt engaging surface D is convexly curved, the two curvatures conforming one to the other as may best be seen from Fig. 3.

The arm 30 is provided with cars 44 to which shaft 46 is pivotally attached by stub shaft 45. The free end of shaft 46 is received within the axial aperture 48 of sleeve 50 which is in turn pivoted to toggle arm 52 b pin 53. A finger 54 attached to shaft 46 projects through slot 56 in the side of sleeve 50. Spring 58 is under compression between sleeve and shoulder 60 on shaft 46, thereby urging the shaft out of the sleeve 50, disengagement being prevented by the interaction of finger 54 and the end of slot 56. Toggle arm 52 is pivotally mounted to bracket 62 by pin 63 and is provided with a pair of stop ears 64 which engage the bracket -62 to limit the motion of arm 52. If the handle 66 attached to toggle arm 52 be moved in the direction of the arrow 68 of Fig. 1, it will be apparent that the arm 30 will be caused to pivot in counter-clockwise direction about shaft 28 and that therefore the side hardening member A will be moved out of engagement with the cone I6 to its position shown in broken lines in Fig. 1. When this has been done, a felt body 2 may be placed on the cone l6 and the handle 66 may be moved to the position it assumes in Fig. 1, at which time the hardening member A will be moved back toward the cone l5 into engagement with the felt body 2 thereon, the felt body thus being engaged by both hardening surfaces C and D, these hardening surfaces both being curved to conform to the shape of the felt body. The sleeve 58 permits the support 32 and consequently the hardening member A to adjust its position to conform to the thickness of the felt body '2, the thickness of that body decreasing during the hardening operation. The above mechanism constitutes the means G.

A motor is mounted on the framework 4 and rotates eccentric 12 about shaft 28 by means of belt 14 and pulley 16, the latter preferably being rigidly attached and formed integrally with the eccentric. Surroundin the eccentric 12 and moved thereby is connecting arm 18 the end of which is pivotally attached by pin 80 to cars 82 on the metal plate 42 which carries the side hardening member A. This mechanism constitutes the means F for imparting oscillation between the felt hardening members A and B, it being apparent that as the motor 10 rotates, the metal plate 42 which carries the side hardening member A is caused to oscillate back and forth within the longitudinal guideway 38 in the support 32.

In side hardening the felt body 2 is placed on the cone [6, the side hardening member A is moved to its position shown in the solid lines of Fig. 1 in which its felt engaging surface C engages and conforms to a portion of the outside of the felt body, while the felt engaging surface D opposed thereto engages, conforms to and supports the inside thereof. Rotation of the motor 10 causes oscillation of the side hardening member A and steam is simultaneously caused to enter the interior of the cone l6 via tube 20, this steam passing through the felt engaging surface D of the cone and into the felt body engaged between the hardener members. This action is permitted to continue until that portion of the side of the hat body which is engaged between the hardening members is sufficiently hardened. The handle 65 is then rotated to move the side hardenin member A away from the felt body to its position shown in broken lines in Fig. 1 and the cone l6 and felt body 2 thereon are then rotated until a new side :portion of the felt body 2 may be engaged between the felt engaging surfaces C and D. The sequence of operations is then repeated. This continues until the entire side of the felt body 2 has been hardened. In the embodiment here illustrated, the felt engaging surfaces C and D conform to one another over an angle of approximately 45. Therefore eight successive side hardening operations must take place before the hat body is completely side hardened. It is obvious that this degree of engagement can be altered at will. It will also be obvious that the hardening member A may be provided in multiple about the central hardening member B so that a larger portion of the hat body may be side hardened simultaneously.

It will be apparent from the preceding discussion that even if a given side hardening operation be permitted to continue for a period beyond that necessary for proper hardening, no creases will be formed in the hat body, that body being supported in its finished shape by the internally conforming cone l6. With this machine the number of rejects is thus materially reduced while at the same time the degree of human supervision which the machine requires is reduced.

The tip hardening member A presents certain departures from design over the side hardening member A which render it particularly useful for. its specific function. It comprises a body of material of the nature previously described the felt engaging surface C of which is spherically concavely curved to conform to the outside of the spherically curved tip of the felt body. The hardening member A is connected by means of bolts 84 to metal plate 86 which is in turn provided with laterally projecting ears 88, these cars being adapted to ride within the guideway J of the support H. This guideway is defined by members -90 and 92 attached to member H by means of screws 94, this guideway being curved to conform to the spherical shape of the tip. Thus, when the tip hardening member A is in the position shown in the solid lines of Fig. 1, the tip of the felt engaging surface D, the felt engaging surface C' and the arcuate guideway J will all be concentric.

The support H is formed by the ends of the arms 96, these arms being pivotable about shaft 98 and having elbow projections Hill which meet in cars I02 between which is pivotally mounted shaft 46'.

The shaft 46', sleeve 50', toggle arm 52', sleeve 58, bracket 62', stop ears 54' and handle 66' all coact in the same manner as did the corresponding parts of the side hardening member A to move the tip hardening member A between the positions shown in the solid and broken lines of Fig. 1 so that felt bodies may be placed on and removed from the cone l6.

Motor 10' rotates eccentric 12' about shaft 98' by means of belt 14' and pulley 16', the pulley being formed integrally with the eccentric as clearly shown in Fig. 5. A connecting link 18' envelops the eccentric and is moved thereby, its opposite end being pivotally attached to vertically projecting ears I04 on the metal plate 86 to which the tip hardening member A is fastened. Rotation of the motor 10 will cause rotation of the eccentric I2, thus oscillating the connecting link 18 and causing the tip hardening member A to oscillate. Since the only freedom of motion which the tip hardening member A has with respect to its support H is along the arcuate guideway J, the tip hardening member A oscillates along that path and its felt engaging surface C thus oscillates over while conforming to the spherically curved tip of the felt body 2, thus hardening the tip in a manner analogous to side hardening. As was the case in the side hardening operation, steam is preferably passed into the interior of the cone i6, the steam passing through its felt engaging surface D and into the felt body being hardened.

By employing a tip hardening member as above described, and by mounting it in the abovedescribed manner and preferably by combining it with the side hardening mechanism previously described, I have devised a machine which will harden all the surfaces of a felt hat body or of any other felt body having a curved shape while that body is supported in its final shape, the hardening so produced being materially improved by making the felt engaging surfaces from the materials previously described.

It will be apparent that many variations may be made in specific machine design, and particularly in the exact shape of the felt engaging surfaces thereof, without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1, A felt hardening machin for treating a felt body, said body having a shaped tip, said machine comprising a felt supporting and hardening member shaped to conform at least to the inside of the tip of said felt body, a second hardening member having a felt engaging surface conforming to at least a part of the outside of the tip of said felt body, a support for said felt hardening member having at least one guideway curved to conform to said tip, said second hardening member being supported in said guideway for motion therealong and means for oscillating said second hardening member in said guideway while said second hardening member is in contact with the tip of said felt body.

2. A felt hardening machine for treating a felt body, said body having a substantially spherically curved tip, said machine comprising second hardening member being supported in said guideway for motion therealong, and means for oscillating said second hardening member in said guideway while said second hardening member is in contact with the tip of said felt body. 3. In the felt hardening machine of claim 2, means for moving said second felt hardening member toward and away from a position in which said felt body is engaged between said members.

4. The felt hardening machine of claim 2, in which at least one of said hardening members is formed of a steam-pervious granular abrasive material and in which means are provided for passing steam therethrough into the felt body engaged between said hardener members.

5. A machine for hardening the rounded tip of a felt body such as a hat body which includes a support member having a substantially spherically curved hardening surface adapted to fit approximately concentrically within said tip, a hardening member provided with a spherically curved concave hardening surface having a radius of curvature approximately equal to that of said hardening surface of said support member, means for relatively moving said members toward and away from a position in which said felt body is engaged between said members, said last means having at least one guideway concentric with said hardening surfaces and within which said hardening member is supported for motion therealong, and means for oscillating said hardening member in said guideway while it is in contact with the spherical tip of said felt body.

ARTHUR J. EVERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 59,031 Johnson et al. Oct. 23, 1866 171,693 OSullivan Jan. 4, 1876 381,012 Hawley Apr. 10, 1888 390,094 Pendergast Sept. 25, 1888 399,072 Pendergast Mar. 5, 1889 411,662 Keator Sept.- 24, 1889 508,462 Baglin Nov. 14, 1893 527,283 Heaton Oct. 9, 1894 532,875 Heaton Jan. 22, 1895 2,442,590 Evers June 1, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 466 Great Britain Feb. 5, 1874 94,650 Germany Oct. 20, 1897 

